WE'VE all faced the dilemma when preparing for a flight. How much hand luggage can we get away with taking on board.
If your airline is Ryanair, it seems, you’d better be extra careful.
A Spanish lady got the shock of her life when she got booted off a flight because she was carrying books and scrolls.

I had a look at the video on Youtube, she had very little with her, I have seen people carry more than that from duty free before. I also saw her boarding pass in her left hand.

Personally this smells like the ground staff get a cut of the fees they raise, and appear to interpolate the rules to maximize their cut. They probably get paid next to nothing, and rely on the cut of the extra fees to make a living.

I remember seeing a comparisons a few years back between a full service airline I think it was BA ,and LCCs like Ryanair, by the time you add all of the fees etc up, there is actually very little between them. What appears cheap upfront actually costs a lot more with additional fees and charges.

Edit : I should add, I think using Police like this is an abuse of power and process. I have not seen anything to suggest that the airline did not provoke or escalate this. If other passengers were equally upset by the events like the person who posted this on facebook said she was crying for the passenger, I think this shows the passenger was only reacting to the way she was being treated.

[Edited 2012-11-03 22:05:54]

We are addicted to our thoughts. We cannot change anything if we cannot change our thinking – Santosh Kalwar

Quoting zeke (Reply 4):I had a look at the video on Youtube, she had very little with her, I have seen people carry more than that from duty free before. I also saw her boarding pass in her left hand.

I've seen passengers with a boarding pass in their hand create a considerable fuss, especially about security.

if there had been a drama abut her credit card - she said "it wasn't working" - then I can imagine a situation developing. I'd get a bit agitated if my credit card didn't work in similar circumstances.

Quoting zeke (Reply 4):Personally this smells like the ground staff get a cut of the fees they raise, and appear to interpolate the rules to maximize their cut.

The delay to the flight may have had the potential to cost the airline more than the fee associated with this. Ryananir often has tight turnarounds.

Quoting zeke (Reply 4):I remember seeing a comparisons a few years back between a full service airline I think it was BA ,and LCCs like Ryanair, by the time you add all of the fees etc up, there is actually very little between them. What appears cheap upfront actually costs a lot more with additional fees and charges.

Ryanair is not, and has never been, a full service airline. It states it 's many fees and charges quite openly and does not make exceptions. The vast majority of people who fly with the airline cope with all this just fine.

The times I've flown with Ryanair, the staff have been efficient and moderately pleasant, while strictly enforcing the airline's policies.

Quoting zeke (Reply 4):If other passengers were equally upset by the events like the person who posted this on facebook said she was crying for the passenger, I think this shows the passenger was only reacting to the way she was being treated.

I don't know that the other passengers were aware of all the facts that led up to this. I surely don't think that anyone here - including me - knows all the facts.

I do not buy the official line, they state she was booted off for breech of security regulations, the trumped up reason I think how they got the police involved. If that was the case, the whole aircraft should have been offloaded, the aircraft checked, and then boarded again.

Quoting mariner (Reply 5):
The delay to the flight may have had the potential to cost the airline more than the fee associated with this. Ryananir often has tight turnarounds.

I would wager if they left the passenger alone, let them get to their seat, the aircraft would have departed on time. They were using the time before departure to generate more revenue, not with a concern of departure time or security regulations.

Quoting mariner (Reply 5):
I don't know that the other passengers were aware of all the facts that led up to this. I surely don't think that anyone here - including me - knows all the facts.

I do not claim to know all the facts either, considering Ryanair has chosen to not mention the hand carry item issue is in my view trying to deprive the public of the facts to make the passenger look like a villain.

We are addicted to our thoughts. We cannot change anything if we cannot change our thinking – Santosh Kalwar

Quoting zeke (Reply 4):I had a look at the video on Youtube, she had very little with her, I have seen people carry more than that from duty free before. I also saw her boarding pass in her left hand.

Passengers should start reading the conditions of their ticket. This makes me sooo tired.... Yesterday I had a Ryanair flight from Treviso to Budapest and an American couple was making a huge fuss about the carry on luggage.

It is simple, so simple... you can bring ONE item onboard, not more, even taxfree has to fit in there...

Ryanair explains this in large bold letters on the boardingpass, and Ryanair sends everybody a special email about this before departure, explaining the hand luggage rules.

How can people still complain when an airline does so much to explain it before the flight??

She was prevented from accessing the aircraft by gate staff, but she turns up on board with prohibited items. If she's willing to break one set of rules, what else might she disobey. Rules are rules, she needs to learn to live with those or quit complaining when she's ejected.

Ryanair have said nothing about her carry on in their remarks, if it was indeed the real issue.

Police would not get involved if that was the case.

I have no issue with rules, I do have an issue with the lack of common sense being applied in this case, they were victimising the passenger. It could have been suggested she don the jack, put the book in the pocket, and then she would tick all the boxes. She could then take the jacket off when she got onboard. What has been gained out of all this ?

The American passengers you talk about, how many roll aboards did they have ? Often I see US passengers taking way in excess of even our business class hand carry allowance, some with two roll aboards and a laptop in economy. Often I have seen passengers unable to lift their hand carry overhead, way in excess of the limit. I can understand airlines cracking down on this.

Passengers get enough aggravation as it is with the security checks, the last thing we need is ground staff making it even worse when there is no safety benefit.

We are addicted to our thoughts. We cannot change anything if we cannot change our thinking – Santosh Kalwar

Quoting rwy04lga (Reply 13):Wouldn't matter, the rules apply to all airlines. Ryanair is enforcing rules, not company policy.

a) The rules in Europe differ from those in the US. 1+1 may be a TSA rule, but thankfully, there is no TSA in Europe.
b) "ONE item only, you stupid idiot!" is the Ryanair way of treating paying customers. I've routinely boarded flights on e.g. Germanwings with two pieces of hand luggage, one of which contained nothing but my laptop and liquids - separated from everything else to speed up screening.

Walk together, talk together all ye peoples of the earth. Then, and only then, shall ye have peace.

Quoting rwy04lga (Reply 13):Wouldn't matter, the rules apply to all airlines. Ryanair is enforcing rules, not company policy.

No, this carry on policy is a Ryanair only affair (although many LCC's and even some "full service" have similar policies). Trying to gain entry to an aircraft that you've been barred from by gate staff is a different matter, of course.

From what I can see in that video is only her on the plane, therefore we have no evidence of what happened at the gate. Yes you can see she has a boarding pass but how do you know she showed that at the gate or not? She may have pulled it from her pocket as she walked to the aircraft. She has very little on her there but maybe the gate agents took a pull along bag off her and its at the gate. If that is the case then yes I am fully with the airline. It could be she was one of the last passengers, the gate agents saw her coming with a pull along bag AND those pieces you see there to which the airline very clearly states you cannot do and she agreed to that. Then the agents tried to charge her for this extra piece and before she showed a boarding pass and ID, pushed past the gate agents and made a run for it, therefore if she deliberately avoided security checks and becomes disruptive then Ryanair have every right to remove her. Just because she may have broken the rules, why should Ryanair break theirs? This seems yet another case of a passenger its kicked off a Ryanair flight so lets attack the airline without the evidence. Of course it could be thats all she had with her in which case I am on her side but I simply don't know. I heard passengers shouting "Verguenza, adios" which is disgusting, goodbye which sounds to me these passengers witnessed the woman in question being disruptive but of course it could well have been aimed at the guards.

She should have put the book under her blouse or in her jacket.
Ryanair seems to have the most confusing and money grabbing rules of any airline but for maybe Spirit here in the USA, it in part causes confrontations like this.

Quoting zeke (Reply 8):Ryanairs statement why the passenger was booted off was because they did not show their boarding pass or ID when they went through the gate. I can see the boarding pass in their hand.

Are you sure that it's a boarding pass? Besides the video is taken inside the aircraft and not at the gate check-in area, where the alleged problem occurred. Do you have 'facts' as to what occurred at the gate? Please enlighten us, if you do!!

Quoting zeke (Reply 8):I do not buy the official line, they state she was booted off for breech of security regulations,

Again please give us the facts. An assumption doesn't make point of view correct.

Quoting zeke (Reply 8):If that was the case, the whole aircraft should have been offloaded, the aircraft checked, and then boarded again.

Why?? I'm sorry I don't follow your logic.

Quoting zeke (Reply 8):They were using the time before departure to generate more revenue, not with a concern of departure time or security regulations.

You know this for a fact. do you? Don't know an airline that is more concerned with on-time departures than Ryanair.

"Ryanair strongly deny the ruckus had anything to do with luggage restrictions, and claim police were called to deal with disruptive behaviour."

They made an earlier statement to other papers, they have dropped this ID and boarding pass line now as well.

"The airline defended its actions, claiming the woman had become disruptive and "pushed past its gate agents without showing any ID or her boarding card."

A spokesman said: “This passenger was in breach of airport security regulations, and having become disruptive was properly removed from the aircraft at the request of Ryanair agents.”

They have to say this, as you cannot call police for the reason the other passengers say she was harassed.

Neither gels with the passengers that have witnessed the event and posted online. Also if security regulations were breached, everyone is supposed to get off the aircraft, they aircraft gets another check, and then get the passengers back on.

The logic being applied by some posters above, if she had a jacket in one hand, and a cell phone in either hand that is two pieces, and therefore should pay excess baggage. She could put the jacket on, and cell in her pocket and have empty hands. Some common sense needs to prevail.

Quoting Dogbreath (Reply 20):Are you sure that it's a boarding pass? Besides the video is taken inside the aircraft and not at the gate check-in area, where the alleged problem occurred. Do you have 'facts' as to what occurred at the gate? Please enlighten us, if you do!!

Why has Ryanair changed their story to the press ?

Quoting Dogbreath (Reply 20):Again please give us the facts. An assumption doesn't make point of view correct.

Standard procedure, is someone breaches the secure area, the area has to be rechecked. Otherwise terrorists would know if they make a fuss when they get on an aircraft knowing they would get kicked off, and could leave a package behind. Same if someone breaches the terminal security area, the whole terminal gets emptied and everyone re-screened.

As an additional measure airports also hold passengers kicked off flights in the terminal until it reaches the destination, just in case.

Quoting Dogbreath (Reply 20):
You know this for a fact. do you? Don't know an airline that is more concerned with on-time departures than Ryanair.

All airlines are concerned over on-time departures, I do not know of an airline more concerned about generating additional fees than Ryanair.

We are addicted to our thoughts. We cannot change anything if we cannot change our thinking – Santosh Kalwar

Quoting zeke (Reply 12):The American passengers you talk about, how many roll aboards did they have ? Often I see US passengers taking way in excess of even our business class hand carry allowance, some with two roll aboards and a laptop in economy. Often I have seen passengers unable to lift their hand carry overhead, way in excess of the limit. I can understand airlines cracking down on this.

Dont get me started on this couple... with 2 kids. On the outbound flight they were in the aisle across from us, with the kids playing very loud on an Ipad or something like that. Both times they tried to sneak in priority que, both times they were send back. But since they now boarded last they shouted and ranted about not being together on the plane..duh..

Anyway, they had normal carry on, but with lots of tax free stuff. And that didnt fit in the bags..

Oh, and I forgot about the part where they brought a bag full of KFC stuff onboard... cant believe Ryanair staff allowed that..

Quoting zeke (Reply 21):A spokesman said: “This passenger was in breach of airport security regulations, and having become disruptive was properly removed from the aircraft at the request of Ryanair agents.”

I'd guess something happened between check-in and the aircraft because, from the article:

"...said the woman shouted out as she entered the cabin that she had tried to pay an oversized luggage fee with her credit card, but it had not been working."

If she owed the airline the fee, if her credit card wasn't working, and if she was in a mood to shout out that fact as she got on the plane, I'd suggest there is more to the story than we know.

mariner

aeternum nauta

25 blueflyer
: If an airline doesn't want you on their plane and you get on anyway, or refuse to get off when told to, what do you think is going to happen? She may

26 zeke
: Stark Inconsistency, I can see how that would be beyond what is acceptable. I find it interesting that Ryanair have tried to distance themselves from

27 kl911
: Ofcourse she could travel with a valid ticket, but WITHOUT the oversized bag. I am sure she didnt want that. So it's the pax's decision...

28 something
: I don't quite understand why everybody here is jumping at Ryanair's defense and why zeke is catching so much flak. Ryanair is in the business to offer

29 zeke
: Only if that is in the conditions of contract, which it is not. Also good luck convincing an EU court that a roll of paper or a book is a bag, they d

30 mariner
: I have to guess that the fee issue as somehow resolved, or how did she get the boarding card you say you can see? The issue then becomes - how was it

31 kl911
: Two books in your hand, ore one book and one roll of paper are TWO items. Condition of travel, and pointed out at least 200x during checkin online an

32 zeke
: Looked like a self check-in boarding pass to me, done on a printer. It is not written in their rules that you cannot have anything in your pockets or

33 mariner
: Then how did the issue of the malfunctioning credit card come about? As I said from the git-go, there appears to be more to this than any of us know,

34 SCQ83
: I have read about this in a few local websites and, according to some supposedly passengers, the woman entered the aircraft without showing the proper

35 PlymSpotter
: The luggage. It is stated that she tried to pay an 'oversize baggage fee', therefore it can be gathered that her carry on did not comply with the reg

36 musapapaya
: To sum up, the policy of Ryanair, or the way some peopletry to implement it, possibly to maximise revenue, or the share of pay for particular agents,

37 zeke
: My guess she was directed to another desk at the time the boarding pass was scanned. It is often the first time an agent for the airline meets a pass

38 zeke
: Pitty their "policy" is not the same as what they list on their website. Exactly as I suggest above, put the jacket on on, roll of paper/book in the

39 mariner
: Every airline tries to maximise revenue, especially in this day and age, although other airlines just do it differently. Then again, there have been

40 SCQ83
: Ryanair's website is very clear on that: http://www.ryanair.com/en/terms-and-conditions Those terms and conditions are available as well in Spanish a

41 PlymSpotter
: The case reported in the article: "as she was carrying a scroll, which would not fit in her case, and a book." Errr, you might want to read their reg

42 garpd
: The rules of carriage are shown to you on booking, on completion of booking and on your boarding pass. It is quite clear you are only allowed 1 piece